Method and apparatus for laying and collecting a wire

ABSTRACT

A wire laying apparatus comprising a first carrier member, a second carrier member having one end connected to the first carrier member, a communication wire disposed within the second carrier member, and a compressor connected to and supplying a fluid under pressure to a second end of the second carrier member through which the fluid supplied by the compressors serves to move the communication wire from the second carrier member to the first carrier member. The wire laying apparatus may be restructured to serve as a wire collecting apparatus.

This is a division of application Ser. No. 07/944,307, filed Sep. 14,1992, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,263,686 which is a division of Ser. No.07/563,757 filed Aug. 7, 1990, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,163,657.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for laying acommunication wire such as an optical fiber (and including acommunication unit which is a colligation of communication wires) into atubular member or collecting a communication wire from the tubularmember in which it has previously been inserted.

2. Description of Related Art

In the optical fiber art, there exists methods for using compressedfluids to lay in optical fiber, or the colligation of optical fibers, ina previously-placed tubular member (or tube). One such method isdisclosed in-Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 59-104607.

FIG. 8 (Prior Art) illustrates the method and apparatus for laying awire according to the prior art. According to this prior art, acommunication wire 1 is supplied from a supply reel 2. Both the wire 1and the supply reel 2 are under atmospheric pressure. The communicationwire is to be inserted into a tubular member 5, which tubular member 5has previously been disposed within a cable 4, by means of a pressuretransfer head 3 (the tubular member 5 will be referred to as apreviously-placed tubular member.) The pressure transfer head 3 iscoupled with a compressor 6. The compressor 6 supplies the pressuretransfer head 3 with a compressed fluid at a pressure somewhere abovethe atmospheric pressure. With this compressed fluid, the wire 1 ispressed and transferred into the previously-placed tubular member 5.

In order to accomplish the task of laying or collecting a communicationwire utilizing the known apparatus and method, however, the followingproblems are encountered:

First, because the communication wire 1 enters the pressure head 3 at anentrance point which is under atmospheric pressure, the pressure fluidtends to leak from the pressure head 3 at that entrance, and further,because the fluid within the pressure head is under pressure, theentrance of the wire 1 into the pressure head 3 is resisted. Becausethis resistance impedes the transfer of the wire 1, and because thefluid leakage must be compensated for, the known methods and apparatusmust be provided with a compressor having a large fluid delivery.

Second, in actual use of the known apparatus, the reel supply 2, thepressure transfer head 3, and the compressor 6 must all be transporteddirectly to the wire laying site. The wiring laying site is frequentlynot easily reached, nor is it generally a convenient place to transportthe above-mentioned equipment to. For example, the wire laying site maywell be located inside a building or in a tunnel under a manhole.Accordingly, it is difficult to lay communication wire at such a sitewhile utilizing the known apparatus and methods.

Third, utilizing the known methods in apparatus, adjustment of the wiretransport speed is also difficult. In transferring the wire 1, thetransfer speed must be adjusted wherever the previously-placed tubularmember 5 bends or lifts (changes elevation). As previously mentioned,because the pressure head 3 generates a force which tends to resist theentrance of the wire 1, it is difficult to adjust the wire transferspeed utilizing the known methods and apparatus.

Finally, utilizing the known methods and apparatus, it is difficult totake-up the communication wire once it has been inserted into thepreviously-disposed tubular member such that it can readily be usedagain. This is because in using the known methods and apparatus, thecommunication wire is collected by being reversely fed at an irregularspeed while being subject to constant vibration. This combination ofirregular speed and constant vibration causes the quality of thecommunication wire thus removed to be seriously degraded.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, one object of the present invention is to improve theworking efficiency of laying and collecting communication wire byproviding a method and apparatus which makes it possible to lay andcollect communication wires in a way which advantageously eliminates thepressure force tending to resist the entrance of the wire to thepressure head. It should be understood that the methods and apparatus ofthe present invention are suitable for laying and collecting opticalfiber communication wires.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a method andapparatus for laying and collecting a wire through which there is noneed to transport a pressure transfer device such as a compressor downto the wire laying site.

The wire laying system being provided comprises: a previously-disposedfirst tubular member; a second tubular member having two ends thereof,one end being connected to the previously-disposed first tubular member;a communication wire disposed within said second tubular member; and acompressor means for supplying a fluid under pressure connected to asecond end of the second tubular member whereby the fluid supplied bythe compressor means serves to move the communication wire from thesecond tubular member to the first tubular member.

The wire collecting system being provided comprises: a first tubularmember having two ends thereof; a communication wire disposed within thefirst tubular member; a second tubular member, adapted to receive thecommunication wire, connected to one end of the first tubular member;and a compressor means for supplying a fluid under pressure connected toa second end of the first tubular member whereby the fluid supplied bythe compressor means serves to move the communication wire from thefirst tubular member to the second tubular member.

With such an arrangement, the apparatus for laying and collecting acommunication wire to and from a previously-disposed tubular member isaccomplished as the result of a pressure fit. As can be seen from theforegoing description, communication wire can be easily installed inplaces that would be difficult to reach while carrying a compressor, apressure head, and a reel supply. This is because, in utilizing theapparatus and methods of the present invention, all heavy equipment suchas the power source and the compressor can be located at any fixed pointand only the communication wire and its carrier tube member need becarried to the insertion point.

Furthermore, in laying or collecting communication wire according to themethods and apparatus of the present invention, the problems associatedwith the known methods and apparatuses such as the fluid leakage fromthe pressure head entrance and the reverse pressure force resisting thecommunication wife's entrance into the pressure head can be avoided.Accordingly, the machines employed in the methods and apparatus of thepresent invention (including the compressor) may be considerably smallerthan those employed by the known methods and apparatus. Further, withthe present invention, the need to provide and transport a transfer headand a reel supply are eliminated. In all these respects, the workingefficiency of laying and collecting communication wire is greatlyimproved.

Finally, because the wire to be laid or collected is transferred fromone carrier member to another, the communication wire would always becontained within a carrier member. Accordingly, even if the weather isbad, or the working conditions poor, the communication wire can becollected or laid without being soiled by dirt or rain or otherelements. This can be a significant advantage where the communicationwire being laid or collected is an optical fiber whose performancedepends in part on the condition of its exterior surface. To ensure theprotection of the communication unit under these working conditions, itis preferable to apply a metal material to the carrier tube member beingused.

Other objects, features and characteristics of the present invention, aswell as the methods and operation and functions of the related elementsof the structure and combination of parts and economies of manufacture,will become apparent upon consideration of the following description andappended claims with reference to the accompanying drawings, all ofwhich form a part of this specification. Throughout the drawings, forsimplicity, like reference symbols will be used for designating like orequivalent parts.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1(a) and 1(b) are side views of the apparatus of the presentinvention arranged so as to lay or collect, respectively, acommunication wire;

FIG. 2 is a side view of a typical communication cable having a bundleof previously-disposed tubular members;

FIG. 3 (Prior Art) is a cross-sectional view of a typical communicationunit illustrating the colligation of communication wires;

FIGS. 4(a), 4(b) and 4(c) are sequential cross-sectional views of theapparatus of the present invention illustrating the transfer of anoptical fiber communication unit from one communication cable toanother;

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram comparing fluid pressure forces actingon two different embodiments of the communication wire of the presentinvention;

FIG. 6 is a system diagram of another embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the fluid pressure forcesacting on the communication wire and the embodiment of the apparatusillustrated in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 (Prior Art) is a system diagram of an apparatus supplying theconventionally known methods.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

A method and apparatus for laying and collecting a wire according to thepresent invention will be described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings. In the embodiments illustrated, a communication unit of acolligation of communication wires will be understood to refer to thecommunication wire being described and claimed. One example of acommunication wire of the present invention is an optical fiber.Throughout the drawings, for simplicity, like reference symbols will beused for designating like or equivalent portions.

FIGS. 1(a) and 1(b) are explanatory diagrams which illustrate themethods and apparatus for laying and collecting, a communication unit.The method and apparatus for collecting a communication unit will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 1(b). The method and apparatus forlaying the communication unit will be described with reference to FIG.1(a).

A bundle of previously-disposed tubular members 5 are disposed within acable 4 (See FIG. 2). A communication unit 10 is to be inserted into thetubular member 5. As enlargedly illustrated in FIG. 3, the communicationunit 10 is made up of a colligation of seven optical fiber wires 10(a),which colligation is covered and protected by a layer 10(b). As is bestillustrated in FIGS. 1(a) and 1(b), one end of the tubular member 5 iscoupled with the carrier tube member 7. This carrier tube member 7 iseasily conveyable and therefore may be easily transported to, andcoupled with, the previously-disposed tubular member 5. The carrier tubemember 7 can be coiled for storage and transportation.

FIG. 1(b) illustrates the situation in which a communication unitdisposed within the previously-disposed member 5 is to be collected.This previously-disposed tubular member 5 is illustrated in FIG. 1(b) asbeing coupled at an opposite end with a compressor 6. The compressor 6feeds compressed fluid into the previously-disposed member 5, from thisopposite end so as to transfer the communication unit 10 to the carriertube member 7. When it is confirmed that the communication unit 10 hasbeen transferred to the carrier tube member 7, the open end of thecarrier tube member 7 is closed. Upon closing this open end, thetransfer of the communication unit 10 stops, and the collectingoperation of the communication unit 10 has been completed. Thus, usingthe apparatus and method of the present invention, the communicationunit 10 is easily collected, and further, the communication unit thuscollected can be easily wound within the carrier tube member 7, which isnormally stored and conveyed in a coiled state, and can therefore beeasily reused.

The method and apparatus for laying the communication unit 10 will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 1(a). Consider the case in which thecommunication unit 10 is to be inserted into the previously-disposedtubular member 5. In this case, the communication unit 10 is insertedinto the carrier tube member 7, such that it may later be transferred tothe previously-disposed tubular member 5. The carrier tube member 7, asmentioned above, is typically stored and conveyed in a coiled state. Anoperator nips one end of the carrier tube member 7, and pulls out anydesired length. The end of the carrier tube member pulled out is thencoupled with a connector, and then connected (via the attachedconnector) to the previously-disposed tubular member 5. The other end ofthe carrier tube member 7 is then connected, by way of a secondconnector, to the compressor 6, which compressor 6 then feeds compressedfluid to that end. The fluid pressure causes the communication unit 10to transfer from the carrier tube member 7 to the previously-disposedmember 5. After it is confirmed that the communication unit 10 has beencompletely transferred into the previously-disposed tubular member 5,the open end of that previously-disposed tubular member 5 is closed.Then, the transfer of the communication unit 10 stops. When the transferstops, the laying work of transferring the communication unit 10 to thepreviously-disposed member 5 is complete.

Thus, the communication unit 10 is transferred to thepreviously-disposed tubular member 5. Accordingly, the need to haveauxiliary equipment, such as a pressure head or a reel supply (both ofwhich are essential to the known methods and apparatus), is eliminated.This fact alone provides a remarkable reduction of work in terms oftransporting, moving and controlling these auxiliary machines andresults in a remarkable savings of labor. Further, since a pressure headis not used, the previously-disposed tubular member 5 within the cable 4can be directly connected to the compressor 6. Accordingly, the instantembodiment successfully solves many of the problems arising from the useof a pressure head (including the insufficient pressure force fortransfer, the large compressor requirement, the adjustment of thetransfer speed and the pressure head entry leakage). It should beunderstood that the communication unit 10 may be a colligation ofoptical fiber communication wires.

In an alternative use, a communication unit 10 destined to be laid ispreviously inserted into a coiled carrier tube member 7. This coiledcarrier tube member 7 containing the communication 10 is thentransported to a job-site. The communication unit 10 can be pulled outof the tubular member 7 and stretched out with its (the communicationunit's) end being coupled with the previously-disposed tubular member 5.Accordingly, the communication unit 10 may then be flexibly handled ascommon electrical cable is handled.

When encountering a location where wire-laying work is difficult, anengineer unroll the coiled carrier tube member 7 to the extent necessaryto reach the job site so as to avoid having to work in that location.Accordingly, the communication unit may be laid while the equipment(i.e., the compressor and the portion of the tubular member 7 remainingcoiled) are placed at a remote location. Because the uncoiled tubularmember and the compressor can be placed at a remote location, thecommunication unit 10 is easily laid, even in those places which aredifficult to work in utilizing the known methods and apparatus such asinside a building or in a tunnel under a manhole.

The method of collecting and laying a communication unit 10 utilizingthe apparatus and method of the present invention will be described withreference to FIGS. 4(a), 4(b) and 4(c). These figures illustrate thecollection of a communication wire from one previously-disposed memberand insertion to another previously-disposed member.

As shown in FIG. 4(a), an optical fiber communication unit 10 is(previously) inserted into a couple of cables 8 and 9, which areconnected at a point B. A compressor 6 is connected to the cable 8 at apoint A. A transport/storage tube 11 is connected to cable 9 at a pointC. To start, the compressor 6 is driven to feed compressed fluid intothe cable 8, which causes the optical fiber communication unit 10 totransfer to the tube 11 (to collect the wire). Then, the cable 9 isdisconnected from the cable 8 and reconnected to another cable 12. Atthe same time, the compressor 6 is disconnected from the cable 8 andconnected to an open end (the right end as depicted) of thetransport/storage tube 11 (See FIG. 4(b)). Then, the compressor 6 isdriven to feed pressure-fluid to the transport/storage tube 11, whichcauses the optical fiber communication unit 10 to transfer to the cable12 (to transfer the wire). In this way, the optical fiber communicationunit 10 can be transferred from the cable 8 to another cable 12 (SeeFIG. 4 (c)).

Methods for laying and collecting a communication wire according to afurther embodiment of the present invention will be described withreference to FIG. 5. The primary difference between the instantembodiment and the above-described embodiment is that a terminal portionof the communication unit 10, viz, the end closer to the compressor, theterminal end 99, has a thicker cross-sectional area than the remainderof the wire. The communication wire thus shaped may be readily formed byeither a monolythic moulding or a terminal jig. According to thisfurther embodiment, the thick end reduces the gap between thecommunication wire and the inner wall of the tubular member. Because ofthis, the pressure drop between the pressure supply terminal and the fatterminal of the wire is greatly reduced. Hence, the pressure drop alongthe remainder of the communication wire is greater and causes thetransfer speed of the wire to increase. This information is depicted ingraphic form in FIG. 5. The relationship between the inclination of thepressure drop and the transfer force in this situation is discussed byS. Hornung, et al. in their paper entitled "The Blown Fiber Cable" inIEEE Journal On Selected Areas In Communications, No. 5, of Vol. SAC-4,p. 679-685, August 1986. In the paper, a transferring force (f) isexpressed by the following equation:

    f=(π/4)(dP/dL)d1×d2,                              (1)

Where d1 indicates an outer diameter of the optical fiber, and d2 aninner diameter of the tube path. As can be seen, the force (f) isproportional to the inclination of the pressure drop (dP/dL). In thecase where the inner diameter of the carrier tube member is smaller thanthat of the previously-disposed tubular member, the pressure drop withinthe carrier tube member itself is relatively small. In this case, thepressure drop over the wire surface within the carrier tube member isgreater than that when the inner diameters of both the tubular membersare equal to each other, Accordingly, a greater transfer force can beobtained by providing a smaller inner diameter on the tubular memberreceiving the transfer of the communication unit, as can be seen fromthe equation (1).

An apparatus and a method of laying a wire according to additionalembodiments of the present invention will be described with reference toFIG. 6. The major difference between the instant embodiment from thoseembodiments described above is that branch tubes, branching off from thecarrier tube member, are provided such that compressed fluid can be fedfrom each of these branch tubes. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing awiring laying apparatus according to the instant embodiment. FIG. 7graphically illustrates the pressure distribution within the tubularmembers (both the carrier tube member and the previously-disposedtubular member). A first carrier tube member 16, located downstream of amain tube 14, is connected at one end to the main tube 14, through avalve 15. The main tube 14 is connected to the compressor 13. The otherend of the first carrier tube member 16 is connected to one end of asecond carrier tube member 17. The other end of the second carrier tubemember 17 is connected to one end of a third carrier tube member 18. Theother end of the third carrier tube member 18 is connected to apreviously-disposed tubular member 19. A branch tube 21 located betweenthe first and second carrier tube members 16 and 17, is connectedthrough a valve 20 to the main tube 14. A branch tube 23, locatedbetween the second and third carrier tube member 17 and 18, is connectedthrough a valve 22 to the main tube 14.

In the instant wire laying apparatus, with the supply of compressedfluid from first and second branch points 21(a) and 23(a), the pressurecan be uniformly distributed between the pressure supply and the branchportions, and hence the pressure drop beyond each of the branch portionscan be increased. This result is depicted in graphic form in FIG. 7.Accordingly, in inserting a wire into the carrier tube members, if,after the terminal of the wire passes the branch portions 21(a) and23(a), the pressure fluid is supplied from the branch portions 21 and23, the pressure drop over the communication wire's length is increased,and results in an increase in the pressure transfer force. As a directresult of this increase, a higher transfer speed may be obtained.

The wire laying methods and apparatuses thus arranged were tested, andthe results of these tests will now be described.

In a first test, both the conventional wire laying method and the wiringlaying method according to the present invention were operated. Theresults of the first test will be comparatively described. Seven tubularmembers with an inner diameter 6 mm were disposed in the cable 250 mlong (See FIGS. 2 and 3). Seven optical fibers were colligated into acommunication unit of 2 mm in outer diameter. The communication unit wasthen transferred to the cable through a conventionally known transferhead. In completing the transfer of the communication unit, 7 minuteswere taken using compressed air at 4 kg/cm². The amount of thecompressed air discharged by the compressor during this transfer was 130l/min.

Utilizing the wire laying method according to the present invention, a270 m long unit communication unit was inserted into a 300 m longcarrier tube member having a 6 mm inner diameter. This insertion wasachieved by using a compressor with a sufficient quantity of flow. Thecarrier tube member was then connected at one end to apreviously-disposed tubular member within a cable 250 m long. The otherend of the carrier tube member was then connected to the compressor.Utilizing the compressed air pressure of 4 kg/cm² (measured at theconnection point between the tubular members), it took 6 minutes and 50seconds to lay the wire. The amount of air discharged from thecompressor was 70 l/minute. The test was conducted with the carrier tubemember being left in an extended (not coiled) state.

A second test using a carrier tube member with an inner diameter smallerthan that of the previously-disposed tubular member will now bedescribed. In this test, the length and inner diameter of the carriertube member was 300 m and 4 mm, respectively. The length and innerdiameter in the previously-disposed tubular member was 250 m and 6 mm,respectively. The length and outer diameter of the communication unitwas 270 m and 2 mm, respectively. The communication unit was theninserted into the previously-disposed tubular member. Compressor air at4 kg/cm² was supplied from one end of the previously-disposed tubemember. The time taken for laying the wire was 6 minutes and 30 seconds.This figure illustrates that reducing the inner diameter of the tubemember receiving the communication unit below that of the tube membertransferring the communication increases the transfer force and reducesthe transfer time.

A third test was carried out in which branch tubes, branching off fromthe carrier tube, were utilized. In this test, a branch tube was coupledwith the carrier tube member at a position 200 m distant from theconnection point between the carrier tube member and thepreviously-disposed tubular member. A 270 m long communication unit waslaid in a previously-disposed tubular member, 250 m long. The pressureof the compressed air was 4 kg/cm² (measured at the end of the carriertube member). To begin the transfer of the communication unit,compressed air was supplied from the end of the carrier tube member.After the communication unit passed the position at which the branchtube was mounted, the end of the carrier tube member was closed, and thecompressed air was then supplied through the branch tube. It took only 6minutes and 20 seconds to lay the wire utilizing this arrangement. Ascan easily be understood, by referring to FIG. 7, by utilizing a branchnetwork, the time necessary to transfer the communication unit wasfurther reduced.

A fourth test featured a tubular terminal member mounted on the terminalof a communication unit (the terminal member is the thicker end at theterminal position referred to in connection with FIG. 5). In thisexperiment, seven 270 m long optical fibers were colligated into acommunication unit having an outer diameter of 2 mm. A tubular terminalmember 4 mm long and 3.5 mm in diameter was mounted on the terminalportion of the communication unit. The communication unit was theninserted into a 300 m long carrier tube member, as described above. Thiscarrier tube member was then connected to a 250 m longpreviously-disposed tubular member. Compressed air at a pressure of 4kg/cm² was supplied from the other end of the carrier tube member. Thewire laying time was 6 minutes and 10 seconds, which time illustratesthat the transfer force may be increased by reducing the gap between thecommunication unit and the tubular members at the terminal end of thecommunication unit. This increased transfer force translates into ashorter transfer time.

In conventionally-known wire collecting methods, the first step intransferring a communication wire would be to remove the pressure head.Following this, the wire would be taken up by a supply reel. By doingso, the communication unit would be reversely transferred from a tubularmember to the supply reel. It is noteworthy to mention that incollecting the communication unit in this manner, the transfer speed ofthe communication unit was unstable (i.e., it was transferredintermittently at higher or lower speeds) and during the course of thetransfer, the communication unit was subject to vibration while undertension. Furthermore, it was difficult to control the take-up speed ofthe reel.

Utilizing the apparatus and method of the present invention, however, acommunication unit can be transferred to a carrier tube member fortransfer/storage in 4 minutes and 40 seconds. After confirming thecompletion of the wire transfer, the open end (the end not connected tothe previously-disposed tubular member) of the carrier tube member wasclosed. The transfer of the communication unit was then stopped. Thecommunication unit thus collected is easily reused and can be laid bythe wire laying method of the present invention.

In the situation in which a communication unit 10 is to be transferredfrom one previously-disposed tubular member to a secondpreviously-disposed tubular member (shown in FIGS. 4(a), (b) and 4(c)),a communication unit of 150 m, which was laid over a distance of 200 mbetween points A and C, was collected into the transfer/storage tube 11.The communication unit 10 was then connected to anotherpreviously-disposed tubular member at point B and was laid betweenpoints C and D. In so doing, no poorly wound communication units 10 werefound. Furthermore, the entire connection change was completed within 20minutes.

At the stage of actual production, a compressor of large capacity isinstalled in the factory. With this compressor, a communication unit ofdesired length may be inserted into a carrier tube member at thefactory. The carrier tube member contained in the communication cable iseasily transported to a job-site. At the job-site, the communicationunit may be laid according to the present invention. In this way, thecharacteristics of the pressure transfer of each unit can be checkedprior to beginning work on laying the communication wire.

It should be understood that the present invention is not limited to theembodiments as mentioned above, but, may be variously modified andchanged within the scope of the invention. For example, a plurality ofcommunication units as connected may be used for a communication unit asreferred to in the above-mentioned embodiments. The length, structure,shape and the like of the cable, tubular member, and communication wiremay be appropriately changed. Accordingly, a communication unit muchlonger than the cable it is to be laid into may be inserted into acarrier tube member, then laid in a single tubular member and cut off ata desired length.

A new communication unit may also be inserted into a previously-disposedtubular member, while simultaneously removing the old communication unitpreviously inserted. In this case, the new and old communication unitsmay be connected together or separate from each other. While thecommunication units referred to in the above-mentioned embodiments aregenerally comprised of a colligation of communication wires, it is alsowithin the scope of the invention that single wires serving as opticalfibers may be inserted individually. It should be understood that themethods according to the present invention are applicable to such anindividual insertion.

It should also be understood that the laying and collecting of only apart of a communication unit or a communication wire (See FIGS. 4(c),4(b) and 4(c)) should be considered within the scope of the presentinvention.

In light of the transfer force characteristics noted above, in layingcommunication wire, it is preferable that the diameter of the carriertube member be slightly larger than that of the previously-disposedtubular member. For the same reasons, in collecting a wire, it ispreferable that the carrier tube member (the receiving tube in thissituation) have a slightly smaller inner diameter than that of thepreviously-disposed tubular member.

As can be seen from the foregoing description, according to the presentinvention, the wire laying or collecting work can be readily donewithout the necessity of carrying a pressure head transfer device or acompressor directly to a job-site. Furthermore, given the transfercharacteristics of the apparatus of the present invention, a relativelysmall compressor may be used in laying and collecting a communicationwire while at the same time minimizing the flow rate required to latercollect that wire.

What is claimed is:
 1. A wire laying apparatus comprising:a firstcarrier member; a second carrier member having one end connected to thefirst carrier member; a communication wire disposed within the secondcarrier member; a compressor means for supplying a fluid under pressureconnected to a second end of the second carrier member whereby the fluidsupplied by the compressor means serves to move the communication wirefrom the second carrier member to the first carrier member; a pressureheader connected to the compressor means and two branch tubes connectedbetween the pressure header and the first carrier member, each branchtube having a branch tube valve disposed therein whereby each branchtube can be selectively opened and closed in operational co-operationwith the movement of the communication wire; at least one additionalsecond carrier member with each additional second carrier member beingserially disposed between the compressor means and the first carriermember and being provided with a communication wire disposed therein,further, each additional second carrier member being provided with abranch tube including a branch tube valve disposed between eachadditional second carrier member and the first carrier member wherebyeach branch tube can be selectively opened and closed in operationalco-operation with the movement of teach of the communication wires.